Thirty years ago on Feb.17th and on Hal Holbrook's birthday I might add, premiered the movie "Murder By Natural Causes". By the mystery team that brought us "Columbo",brings us a movie in the same style that has lust,greed,and of course....MURDER! Katharine Ross(The Graduate,Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,They Only Kill Their Masters,The Stepford Wives,to name a few)plays Allison Sinclair a woman who wants her lover Gil Weston(Barry Bostwick:Grandpa Clyde of Phineas and Ferb,and Mayor Randall M. Winston Jr. of Spin City)to kill her mentalist husband Arthur Sinclair(Hal Holbrook:Magnum Force,Creepshow,and etc.)who has a bad heart by natural causes,so that she can inherit all his wealth. The plan is set and let the game begin...but who will win? This movie will have your heart pounding at the edge of your seat til the end. A must for mystery fans! This movie also stars Richard Anderson(Oscar Goldman of "The Six Million Dollar Man"and "The Bionic Woman")as lawyer friend George Brubaker. Hal Holbrook at his best!
Reviews
7 Reviews
Murder by Natural Causes
(1979 TV Movie)
""Never Cheat On A Mind Reader"!
17 February 2009
Warning: Spoilers
Miracle on 34th Street
(1973 TV Movie)
" Mr. French aka Kris Kringle"
14 December 2008
Warning: Spoilers
I watched this when it first came on TV 35 years ago Dec.14,1973. I liked this one better than the 1947 and 1994 versions. Although,the 1947 and 1994 ones are on DVD and get the most advertised. This 1973 made for TV one is the one I grew up with as an 11 yr. old kid in the 70's.When at Christmas,kids wanted things like bicycles,roller skates, sleds,footballs,GI Joes,Barbie dolls,and the board games at that time. And before there were Ipods,there was the view master.
This one stars Sebastian Cabot(Mr.French of Family Affair and Winston Essex of the Ghost Story series)as a man claiming to be Santa Claus. But Macy's store workers Karen Walker(Jane Alexander)and Dr.Sawyer(Roddy McDowall)have a hard time believing that but Karen's daughter Susan(Suzanne Walker(whatever came of her?)believes him. David Hartman(The Bold Ones:The New Doctors and Lucas Tanner)(the icon of 70's TV) plays Bill Schaffaer the lawyer who helps Kris Kringle prove who he is.
This movie also stars Jim Backus(I Married Joan and Thurston Howell III of Gilligan's Island)as Horace Shellhammer. I liked it when Susan called him "Horace Belljammer". Conrad Janis(Mork and Mindy),Tom Bosley(Mr.C of Happy Days),and David Doyle(Bosley of Charlie's Angels)This movie should also set the record straight of a rumor that was going around of Tom Bosley and David Doyle being the same person. There is a scene were you see both actors together at an angle. So that rumor is false.
I got this movie taped and watch it every Christmas because it reminds me of the Christmases I grew up with in the 70's.
In my opinion,the best version.
This one stars Sebastian Cabot(Mr.French of Family Affair and Winston Essex of the Ghost Story series)as a man claiming to be Santa Claus. But Macy's store workers Karen Walker(Jane Alexander)and Dr.Sawyer(Roddy McDowall)have a hard time believing that but Karen's daughter Susan(Suzanne Walker(whatever came of her?)believes him. David Hartman(The Bold Ones:The New Doctors and Lucas Tanner)(the icon of 70's TV) plays Bill Schaffaer the lawyer who helps Kris Kringle prove who he is.
This movie also stars Jim Backus(I Married Joan and Thurston Howell III of Gilligan's Island)as Horace Shellhammer. I liked it when Susan called him "Horace Belljammer". Conrad Janis(Mork and Mindy),Tom Bosley(Mr.C of Happy Days),and David Doyle(Bosley of Charlie's Angels)This movie should also set the record straight of a rumor that was going around of Tom Bosley and David Doyle being the same person. There is a scene were you see both actors together at an angle. So that rumor is false.
I got this movie taped and watch it every Christmas because it reminds me of the Christmases I grew up with in the 70's.
In my opinion,the best version.
Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell
(1978 TV Movie)
"He's No Rin Tin Tin....He's Satan's Best Friend"!
30 October 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Before Cujo,there was Lucky the devil dog. In 1978,on Halloween night the movie"Devil Dog,The Hound of Hell" premiered. A story of a family getting a new puppy (from a farmer who just happen to be in the neighborhood selling fruits and vegetables) because their dog Skipper was killed.Coencidence? Everyone loves the new dog,but there is something strange about him.
It isn't long until the father Mike Barry(Richard Crenna,First Blood)starts to notice.His wife Betty(Yvette Mimieux,Where The Boys Are,Jackson County Jail,Snowbeast)is different and his kids Charlie and Bonnie(Ike Eisenman,Witch Mountain and Fantastic Vourage and Kim Richards,Witch Mountain,Nanny and the Professor,Hello Larry,Tuff-Turf)also have changed. Does the dog have something to do with it? He's determined to find out and do whatever it takes to save his family.
This movie is great because it has Ike and Kim playing a darker side of themselves than what we saw on those witch mountain movies. This is one of the many 70's made-for-TV horror movies that was actually scary for a made-for-TV horror movie. The music was creepy and even the ending which I won't tell made you think.
This movie also stars Ken Kercheval(Cliff Barnes of Dallas)and R.G. Armstrong(who couldn't stay away from devil movies remember"Race with the Devil"?)
It's worth watching.
It isn't long until the father Mike Barry(Richard Crenna,First Blood)starts to notice.His wife Betty(Yvette Mimieux,Where The Boys Are,Jackson County Jail,Snowbeast)is different and his kids Charlie and Bonnie(Ike Eisenman,Witch Mountain and Fantastic Vourage and Kim Richards,Witch Mountain,Nanny and the Professor,Hello Larry,Tuff-Turf)also have changed. Does the dog have something to do with it? He's determined to find out and do whatever it takes to save his family.
This movie is great because it has Ike and Kim playing a darker side of themselves than what we saw on those witch mountain movies. This is one of the many 70's made-for-TV horror movies that was actually scary for a made-for-TV horror movie. The music was creepy and even the ending which I won't tell made you think.
This movie also stars Ken Kercheval(Cliff Barnes of Dallas)and R.G. Armstrong(who couldn't stay away from devil movies remember"Race with the Devil"?)
It's worth watching.
Summer of Fear
(1978 TV Movie)
"It's The Witch Meets The Exorcist"...(sort of)!
29 October 2008
Warning: Spoilers
This October 31,2008 will mark the 30th anniversary of "Summer of Fear"/"Stranger in our House"(which ever you prefer).A young girl named Rachel (played by the Exorcist's Linda Blair)is visited by her cousin Julia(Lee Purcell)after Julia's parents are killed in a car accident.
Everyone likes Julia and is taken by her at first. That is until strange things start to happen that only Rachel notices and strange objects that Rachel finds that leads her to believe that her cousin may be a witch. No one believes Rachel's accusations and thinks she's just jealous of Julia.
It's up to Rachel and her neighbor Professor Jarvis(played by MacDonald Carey,Days of our Lives)to expose Julia for what she is.
This movie also stars Jeff East(Huckleberry Finn,The Day After)and(a unknown at the time)Fran Drescher who later gained fame with the hit series"The Nanny".
This movie does have some scary moments.
Everyone likes Julia and is taken by her at first. That is until strange things start to happen that only Rachel notices and strange objects that Rachel finds that leads her to believe that her cousin may be a witch. No one believes Rachel's accusations and thinks she's just jealous of Julia.
It's up to Rachel and her neighbor Professor Jarvis(played by MacDonald Carey,Days of our Lives)to expose Julia for what she is.
This movie also stars Jeff East(Huckleberry Finn,The Day After)and(a unknown at the time)Fran Drescher who later gained fame with the hit series"The Nanny".
This movie does have some scary moments.
Satan's School for Girls
(1973 TV Movie)
" Hell's Angels...of another kind !"
18 September 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Yes,even the angels once had a dark side. I saw this movie 35 yrs. ago on ABC Movie of the Week when I was 11 years old. I thought it was pretty scary at the time for a TV movie. Of course,TV horror movies back in the 70's had a way of scaring people without being gory. It did for me anyway.
This movie is about a woman named Elizabeth played by Pamela Franklin(The Legend of Hell House)who wants to find out why her sister died.(She won't believe it was suicide)So,she goes to the all-girl school her sister attended appropriately named "Salem's Academy".(That should tell you something)
There she meets two girls Roberta and Jodie played by Kate Jackson(Dark Shadows,The Rookies,Charlie's Angels,Scarecrow and Mrs.King)(Did I leave any out?)and a young(unknown at the time)Cheryl Stoppelmoor later would change it to Ladd and rejoin Kate Jackson on "Charlie's Angels". Well back to the movie.
Elizabeth tries to find out what happened to her sister, but no one seems to know nothing or do they? Why is everyone she talks to seem to be clueless about what happened to her sister Martha or too scared to say anything? Still,she's determined to find out what happened to her sister and she may find out more than she expected.
This movie also stars Roy Thinnes(The Norliss Tapes,The Horror at 37,000 Feet)as Professor Clampett. Also,Jo Van Fleet and Lloyd Bochner.
Speaking of Charlie's Angels, there was an episode where Sabrina and Kris went undercover at an all-girls school. I've always wondered if that episode was a tribute to "Satan's School for Girls"? I guess I'll never know.
This movie is about a woman named Elizabeth played by Pamela Franklin(The Legend of Hell House)who wants to find out why her sister died.(She won't believe it was suicide)So,she goes to the all-girl school her sister attended appropriately named "Salem's Academy".(That should tell you something)
There she meets two girls Roberta and Jodie played by Kate Jackson(Dark Shadows,The Rookies,Charlie's Angels,Scarecrow and Mrs.King)(Did I leave any out?)and a young(unknown at the time)Cheryl Stoppelmoor later would change it to Ladd and rejoin Kate Jackson on "Charlie's Angels". Well back to the movie.
Elizabeth tries to find out what happened to her sister, but no one seems to know nothing or do they? Why is everyone she talks to seem to be clueless about what happened to her sister Martha or too scared to say anything? Still,she's determined to find out what happened to her sister and she may find out more than she expected.
This movie also stars Roy Thinnes(The Norliss Tapes,The Horror at 37,000 Feet)as Professor Clampett. Also,Jo Van Fleet and Lloyd Bochner.
Speaking of Charlie's Angels, there was an episode where Sabrina and Kris went undercover at an all-girls school. I've always wondered if that episode was a tribute to "Satan's School for Girls"? I guess I'll never know.
Scream Blacula Scream
(1973)
" It's Blacula verses Foxy Brown"!
21 June 2008
This June 27,2008 will mark the 35th anniversary of the premiere of "Scream Blacula Scream". The continuing story of Mamuwalde,the black prince who at night becomes Blacula the vampire played by William Marshall.
This time,Mamuwalde meets up with a voodoo priestess played by"Foxy Brown" Pam Grier who just might be able to cure him of his long suffering curse. Will he be cured or will he cursed forever?
The movie is scary great and the music is "hip". What can I say it was the 70's.
This movie also stars Michael Conrad "Hill Street Blues",Bernie Hamilton "Starsky and Hutch", and a young Craig T. Nelson (as Craig Nelson)who later on gained fame with the horror movie "Poltergeist" and TV shows like "Coach","The District", and "My Name is Earl" to name a few.
A must for fans like me of those 70's horror movies.
This time,Mamuwalde meets up with a voodoo priestess played by"Foxy Brown" Pam Grier who just might be able to cure him of his long suffering curse. Will he be cured or will he cursed forever?
The movie is scary great and the music is "hip". What can I say it was the 70's.
This movie also stars Michael Conrad "Hill Street Blues",Bernie Hamilton "Starsky and Hutch", and a young Craig T. Nelson (as Craig Nelson)who later on gained fame with the horror movie "Poltergeist" and TV shows like "Coach","The District", and "My Name is Earl" to name a few.
A must for fans like me of those 70's horror movies.
Deathmoon
(1978 TV Movie)
"Aloha, Wolfman"!
31 May 2008
This May 31,2008 marks the 30th anniversary of the premiere of Deathmoon.
I remember when this movie first aired on TV, I liked it then and I still like it to this day. An average horror movie not gory but remember it was a made-for-TV-movie.
An over worked businessman(Robert Foxworth "Falcon Crest") on the advise of his doctor, goes to Hawaii on a vacation to rest and relax...right! He doesn't realize he is cursed and even in Hawaii when the full moon rises "he who is cursed will transform himself from an ordinary man into a vicious beast".
This may have been one of the last werewolf movies which showed the wolf to look like a "wolf-man". Having a wolf head and paws wearing clothes and walking upright,as later on in movies like "The Howling","An American Werewolf in London", and "Silver Bullet" to name a few,showed the wolf to look more like a "werewolf", with the long nose,pointy ears,tail,and walking on all fours and looking so beastly, it would have made little red riding hood's wolf tuck tail and run. That is until years later when Jack Nicholson howled at the moon in "Wolf". This movie also stars Joe Penny,who went on to star in series like "Riptide" and "Jake and the Fatman".
The music was eerie and the movie was great. For fans like me of those 70's made-for-TV horror movies, this is a must.
I remember when this movie first aired on TV, I liked it then and I still like it to this day. An average horror movie not gory but remember it was a made-for-TV-movie.
An over worked businessman(Robert Foxworth "Falcon Crest") on the advise of his doctor, goes to Hawaii on a vacation to rest and relax...right! He doesn't realize he is cursed and even in Hawaii when the full moon rises "he who is cursed will transform himself from an ordinary man into a vicious beast".
This may have been one of the last werewolf movies which showed the wolf to look like a "wolf-man". Having a wolf head and paws wearing clothes and walking upright,as later on in movies like "The Howling","An American Werewolf in London", and "Silver Bullet" to name a few,showed the wolf to look more like a "werewolf", with the long nose,pointy ears,tail,and walking on all fours and looking so beastly, it would have made little red riding hood's wolf tuck tail and run. That is until years later when Jack Nicholson howled at the moon in "Wolf". This movie also stars Joe Penny,who went on to star in series like "Riptide" and "Jake and the Fatman".
The music was eerie and the movie was great. For fans like me of those 70's made-for-TV horror movies, this is a must.
Tell Your Friends